A third of 100 pot shops in Seattle fail to register

Dozens of medical marijuana dispensaries in Seattle have failed to get the proper business license, city officials say, despite City Hall’s best efforts to give them some sort of legal shelter….three months after the law took affect, the city’s Department of Executive Administration estimates that there are 105 medical marijuana dispensaries operating in Seattle—however, 37 of them have failed to obtain business licenses. “We only have 68 dispensaries currently licensed in our system,” says Denise Movius, a spokeswoman for the city’s business licensing division.

In July the City Council on Monday passed a new law that establishes a regulatory framework for the growing number of medical marijuana dispensaries in Seattle.

The City Council unanimously passed its own ordinance because efforts to address medical marijuana, which is legal in Washington, foundered earlier this year in Olympia.

The ordinance, sponsored by Councilman Nick Licata, requires medical marijuana dispensaries to obtain a business license, pay taxes and fees and meet city land use codes.

The City Council still wants to come up with zoning rules for the businesses – deciding where they can locate and where they would be banned.

Evergreen State voters approved legalizing medical marijuana in 1998. Washington is one of 16 states which allows marijuana use for medical purposes, but the federal government does not recognize any medicinal use for cannabis.